It is a privilege to  be able to work with the teams and patients that we work with on mission trips and this one was no different. Smile Bangladesh had a historic mission as its 24th with over 51 surgeries overall. Our deepest gratitude goes out to our hosts, the teams, our supports and, of course, our patients and their families. They are what keep us going and we will be returning to Dhaka in March. 

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We've almost come to the end of the entire two week mission.  On the third day of surgery,  there were  11 cases including 6 cleft palates, 3 cleft lips and syndactaly cases. We even had a little celebration because a team that works hard, plays hard. 

Day 2 of the Sylhet portion of the mission had the team completing another 16 cases over 12 hours. All of yesterday's patients were rounded on as well to ensure that their recovery is going in the right direction. 

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We haven't slowed down in Sylhet. It was a great day of surgery although some of the cases needed to be down under the light of a mobile phone! All in all 16 cases done  in a 12-hour day. There were 12 cleft lip repairs, 3 hand surgeries and a cleft nasal surgery done. Tomorrow we have another full schedule and several cases on babies. 

The first week of this mission has come to an end, and it was a historic one for Smile Bangladesh and for advancing   maxillofacial surgery in Bangladesh! The team worked through a couple of blackouts during the last day of surgery in Dhaka but there was a lot of teaching done and more smiles perfected.   A very special thanks  to our host Dhaka Dental college, Bangladesh Association of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery, Stryker CMF for donating plates screws and a power system, and the Royal College of Surgeons (Ed) for supporting this event. 

The second team has now moved on to Sylhet to begin the next half of the mission.  Everyone assembled in Dhaka to get to the new location via plane. Once in Sylhet, the team set up and screened about 80 patients and planned 60 surgeries for the next 4 days.  

​Hoping to keep up the momentum from the first week to continue having a productive mission. 

Day 3 at Dhaka Dental College Hospital was incredibly  busy with several cleft cases and two ORTHOGNATHIC cases!
Tomorrow is the 2nd Annual Orthognathic Symposium sponsored by Bangladesh Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons and Smile Bangladesh!

We have a two week mission this time. Our 24th!

The first week will take place at Dhaka Dental College. Starting with two days of cleft surgery, the week will wrap up with an Orthognathic symposium featuring a cleft Orthognathic surgery on Saturday.

The team that is already there is setting up and screening at Dhaka Dental College followed by a visit to the Liberation War Museum. Tomorrow and day after, the cleft surgeries are planned. Friday is a day of lectures.

Stay tuned for daily updates!

For Smile Bangladesh's 24th mission trip, the team will be headed to Sylhet. Our last trip there was in 2012 so we are looking forward to revisiting and aiding families in that area. Stay tuned for more updates as we get closer!

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